Civil Dialogue ®

Presidential and Vice Presidential Debate Watch

The Presidential and Vice Presidential Debate Watch Civil Dialogue events are scheduled with an emphasis on reacting to statements made by presidential candidates in their campaign materials and during debates.

Civil Dialogue (CD) is a structured format for public dialogue that provides a tool to build bridges across the chasm of public viewpoints. CD can be used in multiple contexts to help people communicate in civil productive ways, especially when they face "hot topics" and need to employ "cool heads." In a Civil Dialogue session, volunteer participants consider a provocative statement and have the opportunity to embody a position on the statement ranging from "agree strongly" to "disagree strongly." Participants are asked to follow guidelines for civility that are explained by the facilitator. The dialogue is then extended to the broader audience who are encouraged to respond with their own opinions and questions. CD was developed by John Genette in 2004 and he, Jennifer Linde, and Clark Olson continue to develop the format at Arizona State University.